Azure Cloud Architect - Job Description

This is a full time position located in Sugar Land.

Onsite 3 days a week.

Great bonus and LTI!

Experience needed - hands on experience going from on-prem to Azure cloud.

Must be able to work in the US without visa sponsorship.

POSITION SUMMARY
The Cloud Architect is responsible for creating the Cloud Architecture Strategy and actively managing and maintaining our Cloud Services footprint. The objective is to maintain a stable and secure cloud infrastructure through oversight and engagement with IT Customers, IT groups and 3rd party Cloud Service Providers. This role has a deep understanding of the technical aspects of cloud computing (Public, Private, Hybrid), data centers, and virtual infrastructure. It is also important to understand the overarching strategic business decisions that need to be made around IT services. A professional with advanced knowledge of installation, configuration and management of the company's IT infrastructure and related systems is necessary to achieve their goals, this entails supporting complex enterprise-level cloud applications, providing architectural direction within the Cloud Services team, and providing guidance on strategy execution as the company evolves. The individual will manage a variety of complex assignments related to planning and design of cloud systems and applications to meet business needs, upgrades to existing systems, monitor and escalate troubleshooting of cloud systems and applications, analyzing system faults and performance issues, and running diagnostic tests on applications operating in the cloud to detect and resolve issues. Understanding and being able to communicate the financial operating costs of a cloud environment is a critical skill for success.
Experience with Cloud Service Providers (Microsoft Azure, AWS, Google), Windows and Linux file systems are a plus. Knowledge and experience with the project life cycle emphasizing design, architecture, technical reports, and documentation will be critical for success in this role. This position requires exceptional professionalism, communication abilities and strong technical skills.
EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS

• ·High school diploma or equivalent required.
• ·Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology or other related scientific/technical discipline required. Master's Degree preferred.
• ·IT architecture certification e.g., TOGAF is a plus.
• ·ITIL V3/V4 certified for IT Service Management is a plus.
• ·PMP/PMI project management certification is a plus.
• ·Cloud security certification like CCSP is a plus.
• ·Work experience with one of the certifications listed below demonstrating technical proficiency may be substituted for education requirements:
• ·CompTIA Cloud
• ·Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP)
• ·Microsoft Certified Azure Fundamentals
• ·Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate
• ·Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert
• ·Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate
• EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS
• ·Fluent in English, oral and written is required.
• ·7 years in information technology with a minimum of 3-5 years in an IT architectural role.
• ·5-7 years in the application/solution development experience in a professional environment.
• ·3-5 years of experience in designing and maintaining Cloud Services technologies such as Azure, AWS, etc.
• ·Experience required in designing, assessing, implementing, and maintaining Cloud Services (e.g., Software as a Service or Platform as a Service, etc.), maintain Cloud Infrastructure Services, and managing and monitoring performance of Cloud Service Providers.
• ·Experience defining Cloud Information Architecture (IA) and Governance.
• ·Experience with Active Directory (on-premises and in MS Azure).
• ·Experience and understanding IT Service Management concepts (ITIL), processes and procedures.
• ·Applies broad knowledge of IT operations principles, business drivers, and related areas to impact results. Understands the key players in the business and communicates appropriately with them.
• ·Strong business acumen and the ability to translate technology terms into business terms required.
• ·Communications (written and verbal) and presentation delivery skills required.
• ·Demonstrated systems performance monitoring and problem resolution skills.
• ·Track record developing and implementing systems infrastructure design best practices and operational policies following industry standard security principles required.
• ·Project Management experience and skills.
• ·Ability to adjust schedule to meet business needs.

MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITIES

• ·Responsible for developing and maintaining a Cloud Services architecture and providing input on decisions to be taken on new virtual cloud equipment and upgrades.
• ·Developing and tracking budgets for new and existing Cloud Infrastructure.
• ·Manage and report availability of Cloud Services across the entire Cloud Server Ecosystem to meet required SLA's.
• ·Develop and monitor metrics to improve Cloud environment availability and performance.
• ·Drive incident resolution from participation in incident troubleshooting sessions through delivery and closure of post-mortems of cloud services related incidents.
• ·Develop standards for Cloud Services.
• ·Support and maintain a scalable backup solution for the virtualized and standalone Cloud environments.
• ·Create and execute test plans to validate Cloud infrastructure and technical systems performance. Report on findings and make recommendations for improvement leading to an optimized environment.
• ·Develop and execute Cloud security standards and policies to ensure maximum security from internal as well as from outside sources.
• ·Ensure optimum monitoring, troubleshooting and resolution of system issues and ensures that processes are in place with proper documentation and diagrams where needed.
• ·If required, take a lead role and manage projects for cloud services and ensure technical and system resources are available to complete tasks as assigned.
• ·Provide ongoing support of the disaster recovery plan with a focus on building a secure, highly available Cloud environment, ensuring successful system restoration of data to meet defined objectives.
• ·Updates job knowledge by tracking and understanding emerging engineering practices; participates in educational opportunities and professional organizations; reading professional publications, maintaining personal networks.
• ·Fosters cross-functional and cross business teamwork; builds and promotes morale; works efficiently and effectively on teams to meet customer needs; supports meeting all team commitments; commitment to delivery, including both high-profile tasks and sometimes the mundane.
• ·Regularly communicate work progress, concerns, and questions.
• ·Work with finance and 3rd party vendors to validate monthly consumption reports.
• ·Work with multiple IT and business groups to manage demand and allocation of Cloud Service and Document Management resources.
• ·Manage 3rd party vendor operational escalations.
• ·Communicate and collaborate with partners in the business and 3rd-party providers to ensure customer satisfaction through transparency and issue resolution.
• ·Investigate opportunities to leverage automation tools to simplify and accelerate the operations process.

EXPECTED RESULTS

• ·Ensure stable and well-maintained Cloud Infrastructure and Document Management environment following industry best practices for high availability.
• ·Enforce SLA's and measure performance to make sure the business goals are being met.
• ·Ability to solve highly complex, non-routine problems and coordinate troubleshooting efforts from various team into a cohesive solution. Enhanced root-cause analysis skills, with the ability to identify improvement opportunities in the technology stack, suggest improvements to current processes and demonstrated cross functional approach to problem resolution.
• ·Identify opportunities for automation and transfer/initiate systems and applications to the cloud to lower footprint in the data centers.
• ·Create, adhere and maintain defined policies and guidelines for managing the cloud services infrastructure.
• ·Ensuring and maintaining adequate inventory of Cloud software, licenses and equipment to support the IT infrastructure environment.
• ·Adherence to all company policies and procedures.